The Reel World

“Maybe it’s all psychological.”

The Killing of a Sacred Deer takes its title from the tragedy “Iphigenia at Aulis” by the Greek dramatist Euripides. I’ve published more than 800 reviews for this site, and that’s almost definitely the most pretentious opening line I’ve ever written. That might sound like an insult, but it’s actually quite fitting for this deeply unsettling movie, which uses a series of grandiose and idiosyncratic flourishes to explore one of the oldest and simplest concepts known to mankind: “an eye for an eye.”

"Well, I tried to start a revolution, but didn't print enough pamphlets so hardly anyone turned up. Except for my mum and her boyfriend, who I hate. As punishment, I was forced to be in here and become a gladiator. Bit of a promotional disaster that one, but I' m actually organizing another revolution. I don't know if you'd be interested in something like that? Do you reckon you'd be interested?"

DC has finally gotten a recent comic superhero movie right with Wonder Woman. We'll know in just a few days if they can bring the streak to two films when Justice League hits the box office this month. Marvel, on the other hand, has a streak going that dates back to 2008 and reaching a truly astonishing 16 films leading up to the third Thor film, Thor: Ragnarok. With three more films on tap for next year, that run could reach 20 films very soon. Not all of these efforts have been great by any means. I found the last Thor film to be one of the franchise's weaker moments. But all of these movies do have one thing in common. With even the least of these films, they have all been entertaining. And that's exactly where Thor: Ragnarok fits the mold perfectly. I wouldn't call this Marvel's finest moment. I would call it one hell of an entertaining ride through the Marvel Universe. Fasten your safety harness. Remember to keep hands and feet inside your seat at all times. No flash photography. You are encouraged to have food and drink; however, there is a choking hazard, as some of this movie is so funny there could be fountains of popcorn and sugary syrup substances ejected toward the rider in front of you.

"Once upon a time there was a great war that brought so much sadness to so many people. Hardly anyone could remember what happiness was like. But something happened that changed all that..."

“Winnie the Pooh doesn't know what to do …” starts a popular song written by Kenny Loggins, recorded first in 1970 by the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band with a more popular and enduring version by Loggins And Messina a year later. Hundreds of millions of children since the 1920's know who Winnie the Pooh is. He's the happy-go-lucky bear who lives in the 100 Acre Wood with Piglet, Tigger, Owl, Rabbit, Eeyore, Kanga, and Roo. But Pooh's best friend of all was a young boy named Christopher Robin. The books have entertained children for nearly 100 years. Walt Disney introduced us to very different but equally as endearing animated versions in the 1960's. The stories have continued with Saturday morning cartoons, feature films, and an upcoming live action Disney production. Pooh and his friends remain a fond memory for most of us. But most of us don't know the story behind the iconic characters. Goodbye Christopher Robin does an admirable job of bringing that story to life as vividly as the stories have brought Pooh to life over the years. But this is not really a happy story at all. Real life seldom is, and I credit director Simon Curtis for being brave enough to tell the unhappy story without so many of the trappings of Hollywood and the need to have our stories end in happily ever after.

Thank You For Your Service is an enterprising look into what is like for some soldiers who return home from war. Some come back to find life has gone on without them, and so have the people they hold most dear. Some return only in body, with their minds reliving things that happened to them over there. Others will do anything just to go back, because that is the only reality that makes sense to them. All three of these circumstances are portrayed in a way that will hit close to home for some while allowing others an enriched perspective that will have them uttering those words with more emphasis than they would have in the past, “Thank you for your service.”

The story follows the return of three soldiers, Staff Sergeant Adam Schumann (Miles Teller), Specialist Tausolo Aieti (Beulah Koale), and Private First Class Will Waller (Joe Cole). The three of them survived the odds and hellish circumstances, which include IED detonations, firefights, and the loss of beloved comrades, and are returning home to resume their lives with loved ones who have been patiently awaiting their return. Although excited to be returning, each of them is struggling internally. For SSG Schumann, he is struggling to overcome the consequences to decisions that he made while in command, decisions that resulted in lives lost. Schuman also finds it difficult opening up to his wife, Saskia (Haley Bennett), who has been holding down the fort and raising their two kids in his absence.

As a director, George Clooney just hasn’t managed to reproduce the magic he had in his first effort Confessions of a Dangerous Mind.  I keep hoping that we’ll get another film at that caliber, but it seems over and over it is a swing and a miss.  Now he has his new film Suburbicon, and this could be his most divisive work to date.  There is nothing wrong with adding a social commentary to a film, but sometimes adding it can be a distraction from the film.  In the case of Suburbicon, it is a tale of two films that couldn’t be any more different from each other.  First we have a tale of a family attempting to keep their lives together following a home invasion, and then we have the story of a black family moving into a white neighborhood and the backlash that follows.

The original script was penned by Joel and Ethan Coen. This was initially what got me curious about the film, since I’ve been a fan of their work for some time.  With George Clooney’s history with the Coens in the past, I figured he would be a good fit to bring their work to the screen.  The first red flag should have been that George Clooney and his long-time writing partner Grant Heslov have writing credits to the film.  This isn’t a jab at their work, but writing-wise they wouldn’t be the go-to pair I’d pick to rewrite the Coens, since they have their own very distinct style.  As expected, you can see the jarring difference in style and tone in the film.

Andy Serkis is mostly known for pioneering the industry of motion capture performance. Most of you may not know that he's worked a bit behind the camera as well. He's led a few second units as director but had not actually directed a feature film. Breathe is his first effort, and while it has some truly nice moments, it looks like a first effort. I have no doubt that Serkis will be eventually demand notice as a director. He demonstrates an incredible base of knowledge when it comes to filmmaking. He certainly understands how to make an emotional connection with characters that aren't really there. The skills are evident. But I suspect Breathe won't be called upon in a future list of Andy Serkis masterpieces.

Robin Cavendish (Garfield) is an active adventurer who revels in physical activity, whether it be tennis or hiking in Kenya. He meets and marries Diana (Foy), who shares his adventurist life. They live a rather idyllic life until Robin is diagnosed with polio and given a short time to live. At first he falls into the expected depression and suicidal thoughts, but Diana manages to inspire him to make something of his life in spite of the terrible diagnosis. His friend Teddy (Bonneville) is a skilled engineer who develops a chair that offers more than just mobility. It has the respiration equipment he requires. Robin uses this new mobility to again travel and have adventures where he eventually becomes an inspiration and advocate for others who are disabled. He ends up living longer than anyone predicted.

Based on a true story. We see those words preceding a lot of films these days. It's almost as if we've started to chronicle our big moments via the cinema. If a story is tragic enough or portrays outstanding bravery or courage, you can expect it to eventually get a feature film. I can almost predict the big films of 2020 or so just by looking at the headlines in 2017. It's become a little overdone for my tastes and can often appear exploitive in nature. These films are often devoid of originality. Of course they are. They're based on something that real life has already written. I've seen bumper stickers that say "God is my co-pilot". I'm waiting for him to get some screenplay credit or a chair in the writer's room. Of course, he'd be expected to start paying dues to the Writer's Guild. There's also the added problem that the audience already knows how the film is going to end. Ron Howard faced the same problem when he directed Apollo 13. He managed to keep us on the edge of our seats anyway. Only the Brave isn't going to keep you on the edge of your seat. But it will sneak up on you. I knew how it was going to end, but that didn't stop director Joseph Kosinski from finding a way to blindside me anyway. It's a trick Houdini would have been proud of. How did he do that? Now, that would be telling.

Eric Marsh (Brolin) is the superintendant of Crew 7 in Prescott, Arizona. They are a team of firefighters, but they aren't the usual "structure" crew. They fight wildfires. It has been Marsh's dream that his team become certified as Hot Shots. The term means that they can actually fight these blazing demons from the front lines. Without the certification they are forced to act as support and work the "back-end" of the fire by digging trenches, clearing debris, and monitoring progress. The town is behind him, from the mayor to the fire chief, Duane Steinbrink (Bridges). If they can pull it off, they will become the first municipal fire crew to earn the distinction. They are currently a couple of men short.

When I first heard about The Snowman, this was a movie that got me excited, that we could possibly have a great thriller to look forward to. At one point Martin Scorsese was attached to direct the film. He eventually backed out of the project, though he is still credited as an executive producer for the film. To step in for the directing duties, Tomas Alfredson got the call, and it’s his involvement that initially got me excited. Back in 2008 Alfredson directed Let the Right One In, which I consider to be one of the greatest horror films to be released in decades. It’s hard for some directors to meet expectations when their first films are such a success. Many may not have heard of Let the Right One In because of it being a foreign film that had a small release in the states, but the remake Let Me In (which he didn’t direct) sure made an impact. Then with the lackluster success of Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy I was beginning to wonder if possibly he had only just gotten lucky and that he perhaps wasn’t the success I’d imagine he would be. Now it isn’t fair to place the success or failure of a film upon one person when there are so many others involved in the making of a film, but when it fails, someone has to be blamed.  I come out saying this because The Snowman isn’t just a bad film; it is an epic disaster like nothing I have seen before.

The film was adapted from a bestselling mystery novel by Jo Nesbo. Personally I’ve never read the book, but from what I understand the book was to be the start of a series, which would mean the film was possibly meant to be a springboard for a franchise.  There is no possibility for this to happen, though thankfully we’re in a time where Hollywood has enjoyed rebooting films that don’t need the reboot treatment. Perhaps this story can be given a second chance to succeed. Alfredson has come out and publically announced that perhaps 15% of the script was never even shot due to time and budget constraints.  Is he simply trying to cover his own backside? That is most likely the case, but as I watched this jumbled mess I found myself believing him, because there are simply points in the story that make no sense, and you have to imagine the script, while adapting the book had to already cut away story points.

Action heroes are very much like sports superstars. So much of what they do is tied to their physical ability, and eventually time catches up to them. For sports figures they either try and accept it and go out on top, or they taint their legend by trying to hang on. The same can be said for action heroes, except there is a third alternative. Some action movie actors learn to adapt their material to their current skill level. Clint Eastwood, while not really an action star, was known for physical roles. He found a way to age quite well on screen with films like Unforgiven and Gran Torino. Jackie Chan appears to have learned that lesson, and The Foreigner, while not in the same stratosphere as Clint's last staring efforts, does a good job of redefining the actor and giving him something he can do well going forward. With a different kind of smoke and mirrors than the wirework and stunt choreography of Chan's prime years, this is a film you will find enjoyable and maybe walk away seeing less than you believed you saw.

The film isn't exactly original. You can take any of a dozen Charles Bronson films and fill in some gaps to get the plot of The Foreigner. Jackie Chan plays Quan. He came to England after the Vietnam War and now owns a quiet little restaurant. His daughter ends up a casualty in a terrorist attack by a new generation of the IRA. The loss sends him into a deep depression made worse by the lack of answers to the violent attack. Pierce Brosnan delivers an incredible performance as Liam Hennessy. Liam is a former leader of the IRA who has now found new life and a kind of redemption as an official liaison between the British Government and his former brothers in the movement. His efforts have delivered 19 years of peace that is suddenly threatened by this bold attack. Liam finds himself caught in the middle of the government and his allegiance to his old comrades. It's about to get much worse for Liam. Quan has identified him as the man who can get the names of the people who killed his daughter, and he sets out as a one-man army to "convince" Liam to provide that information. Quan can't get revenge on the men responsible (yet), so he concentrates his efforts on Liam. It turns out Quan once led a not-so-quiet life once and has some pretty serious skills.

Up front I’ll tell you that the movie Happy Death Day has so many twists and turns that you would think you were on a wild ride at Universal Studios.  The fun but deadly storyline is a cross between Scary Movie and Groundhog Day, and the maze of thrills will have you spooked out until the very end. Or what you think is the end, so don’t get up out of your seat until it’s ALL over. Carrying the perfect movie rating, PG-13, the filmmakers sneak in what most teens are looking for without having to have a parent on hand to watch over them.  It’s has some rude stuff woven into the storyline and even some partial nudity that’s nothing more than a rear-end shot.  The shockers are the cool part, with the ugly killer popping in without notice.  Actually, when you feel the stalker is coming, it’s already there.

Enough of that, as the film actually has a good story and even a moral of sorts.  Tree Gelbman (Jessica Rothe) awakens one morning in the dorm bed of Carter Davis (Israel Broussard).  He brought her back to his room after a wild party at her sorority house, Kappa Pi Alpha. Groggy and wondering why she ended up in his room, she gets all upset.